Pilch & Barnet Blog

Colors are thought to mean specific things and invoke specific feelings in people, some are more constant than others, and some colors may not even cause any emotion or meaning whatsoever. One thing is clear in the design world, colors are very important.

Basically here are the basics, broken down by the colors themselves.

RED: Red is the most emotionally intense color. It stimulates a faster heartbeat and breathing. It is also the color of love. Since it is an extreme color, red may not help people in negotiations or confrontations.

BLUE: The color of the sky and ocean, blue is one of the most popular colors. It causes the opposite reaction as red. Peaceful, tranquil blues cause the body to produce calming chemicals. Blue can also be cold and depressing.

GREEN: Green symbolizes nature. It is the easiest color on the eye and can improve vision. It is a calm, refreshing color. Dark green is masculine, conservative, and implies wealth.

BLACK: Black is the color of authority and power. It is also stylish and timeless. Black is the combination of all the colors so it is very strong statement when used it gets noticed.

Colors can mean different things to people so in the design world we need to choose wisely. So the next time you are updating a room, or choosing a color to wear, or designing an ad layout think about your choices carefully….

Scheduling my time is one of the biggest challenges I have to overcome each day, not only at work but with the rest of my life as well. Will I be able to fit a full work day, class at the university, and kung fu practice in to one 24-hour period? Some how I manage to juggle these things and still remember to feed my dog.

But help is on the way, in the form of Ajax-powered web calendar software. These handy little tools are online programs that allow you to access your precious schedule from any web browser. Google is in on it. And so are 2 other soon-to-be big players in the online application market: 30Boxes and Scrybe.

So I signed on to 30Boxes to see what the hubub was all about, and it is fully justified. This little tool allows for almost-too-easy creation of to-do lists, calendar events, and even integrates events in your blog, myspace account, or flickr photos. All that, and it changes colors too. Add to that the ability to share your calendar between friends and coworkers, and you have another item in your online arsenal for efficiency. The thing runs quickly on even moderate connection speeds, and there are no ads to assault your senses - just clean boxes - 30 or so of them on every screen…

When I am working on a project, I go through a series of steps that really do not change all that much from client to client. I find it necessary to get a feel for the project.

Sometimes, however the feeling is not there. I try different colors, new photos and a laundry list of fonts. Still when I look at it, it just does not seem right.

So I close it and step away, forget about it for a while. Even if it is a project that is due immediately, I still need to step back. Most of the time, after I have closed my mind to it, it comes to me. People are always joking about “it came to me in a dream” but I think our subconscious is really at work here. I open up the file again, and there it is sometimes subtle other times not so much. The change is made and the feeling is now there.

You have to feel what you are doing, it connects you to what you are creating. If you are having troubles, simply let go of it and let it come to you…maybe in a dream.

Like all young girls, I too kept a diary. Full of the most random things; quotes, photos, doodles, stickers, what I ate for lunch, crushes, fights… you name it and it was in there. I don’t really remember when I stopped or why I stopped, but I did. It wasn’t until I got to college when one of my art professors asked us to keep a journal. This was a multi-purpose journal, not just a sketchbook (which was asked of me in all my other art classes.) This was for thoughts, questions, ideas, art, history, life lessons… memories.

It was wonderful. I started sketching things that I wanted to, not things that I had to. I found myself listening more and writing more. Good or bad I “inked it” in my journal. But again I stopped. I blamed time. I look back at the beginning and see so much energy and passion and by the end I see a phrase or even one word on a page. I am sure at the time I thought I would remember what these short phrases or words meant, but I don’t. I could rack my brain trying to remember what “fifty R’s” meant and it won’t come to me.

I recently came across The Creative License : Giving Yourself Permission to be the Artist You Truly Are by Danny Gregory. Book Description: “When Danny Gregory’s life was turned upside down by tragedy, he learned to cope by teaching himself to draw. The result was a complete transformation of his life, his priorities, his career, and the way he saw the world. In handwritten chapters full of his lush watercolor illustrations, Danny now offers readers a program for reconnecting to their own creative energies, using drawing as an example. He gently instructs us in the art of allowing ourselves to fail, giving up the expectation of perfection and opening our eyes to the beauty around us. The result is the permission to express ourselves fully and take part in the creative process without fear. Artist or not, readers of all stripes will find inspiration in this unique and beautiful book.”

And once again I turned back to the art of saving memories, drawing, listening, writing, etc. The lesson: no one needs perfection, they just need something to call their own; something they can take with them; something of value; something that is completely…yourself.

In the recent frenzy over rising gasoline prices, a lot of people are talking about the effects that this will have on the travel industry, particularly the cost of travel by car. In reality, this is more hype than reality—a 400 mile trip in the summer of 2006 costs about $10 to $15 dollars more than it did in the summer of 2005. In terms of the overall costs of a family vacation, it’s not all that significant.

This focus on automobile travel has to do with a lack of understanding about the real issue. The reality is that consumers are being hit every time they fill their gas tank, not just before they drive to the lake. And more importantly, high fuel prices cause everything to cost more—food, clothing, utility bills—pretty much everything we buy everyday. When consumers have less money overall, every business sector is affected.

But this shouldn’t be discouraging—every economic change or crisis will produce winners and losers. This isn’t to discount the fact that times are tougher for everyone in this economy. However, as a business owner, you can’t afford to spend much time mulling this over. To be one of the winners, you’ll have to change the way you market your goods and services. What works in boom times does not necessarily work when budgets are tight. Here are a few techniques that will help your business weather the current economic environment more gracefully:

>>Now is the time to use discounts, special promotions, packages and other sales inducements to drum up more sales. Anytime is a great time for this type of initiative, but now more than ever. If your products and services aren’t selling as well as you’d like, stimulate sales!

>>Remember your best customers. When times are tough, your customers might be bargain hunting, and that means they might be looking to other businesses for the best deal instead of yours. Do what it takes to keep your customer base and work hard to market to them.

>>Up your game. If you’ve slipped in some performance area you’ve always felt was important—customer service, quality, low prices, selection—then now is the time to get things back on track. Or if you’ve always wanted to be better in some particular area, make that a reality today.

>>Use the current economic situation as a marketing point. Gas-buster discounts, inflation-beater specials, economy packages—whatever it takes to turn a bad situation into a marketing opportunity. While other business owners are hand-wringing, you’ll be taking action.

Taking action—that’s what all of these suggestions have in common. Being observant, creative, persistent and bold will get you through most changes in the economic environment. So take action today—it’s a lot more fun than worrying.

If you’re not using Google Earth yet, you are missing out. It is a stand-alone program that works on similar technology to Google’s recently-out-of-beta Maps page, but with a host of goodies contained within. Want directions to that new restaurant? Click on the play button and watch as Google flies you along your route from 5000 feet in the air. Want to see the Grand Canyon or Mt. Saint Helens without leaving your office? Google Earth has elevation information that lets you explore the surfaces of these natural wonders.

Another important function of both Google Earth and Google Maps is the placement of business information. It is another excellent place to get information about your business out there in front of the public, and as part of a useful (and fun) tool that more and more people are using. Look up Pilch & Barnet on Google Maps and you will be pointed to our office, as well as being provided with a link to our site. By keeping a high profile web presence, you ensure your visibility on what is quickly becoming the most popular map tool in the business.

Also, when one looks up Madison advertising agencies on Google Maps, Pilch & Barnet is one of the results. When you click on our name, you get a little bubble that points to our address. Click the details button on that bubble, and you get our business information, as provided by us. Visibility and details!

More and more people are using these tools to plan trips, find businesses and restaurants, and to learn about what is where in a city or region. By keeping on top of these trends, you can be sure that people can not only find you, but find out about you as well!